Staff MemberPremium Member

It looks like PayPal might have some stiff competition in the electronic payment market very soon. According to the latest rumint, Amazon is developing a new payments strategy that is poised to compete directly with PayPal. According to the report, Amazon is planning to introduce a new subscription-based payment system.

Just like PayPal, Amazon will collect a small fee for each transaction, but they plan to allow users to pay bills through this subscription system using their stored credit card information on Amazon's servers. Amazon basically wants to become the middleman, by offering the ability to pay bills and process transactions for both small and large companies.

Here's a quote with a few more details,

Amazon has been testing its payment service with a few startups, including mobile phone firm Ting. The main focus for the effort is subscription-based payment systems, though it could technically be applied to anything else. Like PayPal, Amazon collects a fee for each transaction.

In order for the payment system to get up and running, Amazon needs to partner with companies that will accept such transactions. It's not clear how many firms have so far signed on to the service.

Regardless, services like PayPal and Amazon's deliver some added security in an increasingly insecure world. By providing PayPal and Amazon payment buttons, otherwise unknown merchants can provide some security to customers who wouldn't want to share their credit cards with unknown firms.

Click to expand...

Supposedly, Amazon plans to announce this new service as soon as next Monday. We will keep an eye out for anything official.

I don't mind pay sites such as these, but unlike a bank, which is highly regulated and watched, these payment centers are not.
They act like a bank, smell like a bank, and offer services that could lead one to believe they are a form of bank, but are not.
No standards I am aware of, and if you have disputes, your funds can be held in limbo for a long time, which in any other institution, would never be legal.
I despise payment centers, run by the owner, and you are still charged a fee for using it. That old and lame comment: Use 'our' service, pay a small fee and enjoy freedom from worry....NOT!

If a customer disputes the cost of merchandise, or some other problem arises, my funds can be held against my will, no recourse to cure but to be forced to use again, another 'company owned' mediation service, and then find myself waiting still longer for the entire mess to straighten up.

I have been 'backsided' by PayPal's business models, and my funds were kept against my will as well as being a willful act of theft, as I was denied access to my $430.00.
The problem was strung out for 6 weeks after the transaction ended, no excuses, no information as to status of my money that was supposed to be returned to me, but was not.
Only after I threatened to get the federal banking commission and the FTC involved, THEN, PayPal began to move a lot faster....3 days later...BAM! I had my money returned to my account!
Paypal...NEVER AGAIN!
I suspect Amazon to do better, but will not hold my breath.
This is just my view, based on real world experiences...
Just remember, if it is NOT a bank, but looks and acts like one, your money can get 'lost' and you can have a long time to wait before you finally receive gratification.
To be fair, this occurred back in the early 1990's, but the caveat still has merit!

Premium Member

In the United States, PayPal is licensed as a money transmitter on a state-by-state basis. PayPal is not classified as a bank in the United States, though the company is subject to some of the rules and regulations governing the financial industry including Regulation E consumer protections and the USA PATRIOT Act